


Pumpkins and Red Spider Lilies

by Natsumiya_Teirin



Category: End Roll (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Established Relationship, Gen, Obligatory Halloween happy fic, Platonic though cause they're still in middle school/junior high, Pre-established Chris/Gardenia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2017-11-02
Packaged: 2019-01-28 07:22:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12601288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Natsumiya_Teirin/pseuds/Natsumiya_Teirin
Summary: Russell always liked Halloween, but this one was different. This time, he had someone who actually cared.The people of Dreamtown always went all out for Halloween. Kantera is no exception, especially when it comes to young teens who'd been deprived of a childhood.





	Pumpkins and Red Spider Lilies

Halloween was probably Russell's most favorite day of the year, even back when he lived with his parents. Though, back then it was more about how perfect an excuse it was to get away from them than it was about the candy- though, like any child, he loved that, too. 

But this year...this year, things were different.   
Of course, Chris was still there to go Trick-or-Treating with him, but he wouldn’t be staying over at his house afterwards this time. This time, with Kantera as his legal guardian, Russell had a home to return to. 

Behind him, Kantera finished tying the obi (because as much as he'd taught Russell about the eastern country he'd come from, the boy still didn’t know how to properly tie one) and chuckled fondly.

The kimono he'd chosen for Russell was a black thing with red higanbana scattered here and there. Beneath it was a simple white cotton yukata. The obi around his waist was a dark red- just a few shades darker than the flowers. 

Kantera hummed as he walked to stand in front of Russell. He looked him over critically, then smiled as he thought of something to add.

"Stay there just a moment, Russell- I shall return shortly." 

The doctor turned, showing off the indigo dragon wings that'd been glued onto the back of his own kimono, and disappeared back into the storage room. 

He reappeared a few minutes later with a small bag in his hand. From it, he withdrew a hair ornament that resembled a higanbana, even though the petals were very obviously fake. As he bent down to clip it in his hair, Russell wondered for the umpteenth time what he was even doing. Dressing up like this wasn’t even his idea- it was Kantera's. Russell's normal clothes- the ones that hadn’t been burned and replaced- were mismatched and ragged enough to pass for a costume, but his guardian had insisted that he dress up in something extravagant. 

Kantera himself was dressed up as a dragon- kind of? Russell didn’t remember dragons in those books looking so human- and had given Russell some of his old clothes so he could dress up as someone from feudal Japan. Vague, but it was still unique compared to everyone else's costumes. 

The bell above the door rang, and Russell turned his head just as Kantera stepped back. 

Gardenia and Chris had started dating earlier that week, so they'd dressed up in a couple's set. Gardenia was dressed up as Belle from Beauty and the Beast, while Chris was dressed up as Adam, the prince from the same movie. Russell almost asked why she was there, when normally it was just the two of them, but decided it didn’t matter. She was a nice girl, at least. 

"Happy Halloween, Russell!" She cheered, half-running to him. She was holding a plastic cauldron- one of those cheap semi-transparent ones. Chris was holding a simple pillowcase- the same one he'd used these last three years. 

"Wow, man! Your costume looks _awesome!_ "

Chris said, coming to stand beside Gardenia.   
"...thanks." Russell answered, nodding to Kantera. "Kantera-sensei helped a lot with it." 

Gardenia turned her sparkling eyes to Kantera and her face lit up as she caught sight of the horns on his head, held in place by a transparent plastic headband. 

"Wooow! So _cooool_!" 

Russell was pretty sure the faint pink of his guardian's cheeks was a trick of the light, but he might've been wrong. Kantera always grew flustered when someone praised him, after all. Why would now be any different?

Abruptly, Gardenia returned her attention to Russell, dipping her hand into her cauldron."Papa made some sweets and told me to give'em to you," she said, pulling out a goodie bag decorated with cartoon pumpkins. 

"Here!" She eagerly thrust the bag into Russell's hands, and the boy deposited it into his own bag- which was really just an especially large drawstring pouch, also courtesy of Kantera. 

"...thanks." his stoic expression shifted into a faint smile. 

"Ohoho...are you all ready to leave?" Kantera asked, smiling as pleasantly as ever. The three children nodded and went to stand next to each other as he pulled out his camera from a pocket in his kimono. With a click of the shutter, Kantera took a picture of them. Maybe he'd frame it later; Russell never quite knew what to expect from him. Hell, the man had a bowl of individually wrapped _manju buns_ instead of candy! 

Gardenia tugged at Russell's sleeve, leading him and Chris to the doorway. 

"Ah- we're leaving now!" Chris announced- on Russell's behalf, probably, since the boy was always so frickin' quiet- as the three of them left the shop.

 


End file.
